Changes and Revelations
by KatieZfan
Summary: The Mexican government takes over California and Zorro has been pardoned. What happens to Victoria and Zorro? I don't own the characters, I just play with them. I'll return them as soon as I'm done. No copyright infringement is ever intended.


**Changes and Revelations**

By KatieZFan

July 2015

"Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced." James Baldwin

* * *

A large full moon shone almost like daylight, illuminating the uneven terrain that led from the pueblo to the edge of the small lake at the southern part of the de la Vega property. Victoria rode slowly but surely, having come here often to think and reflect many times in the past.

Dismounting, she tied Anjelica to a low tree limb and ambled over to a large rock where she liked to sit and think. The air was calm and quiet this early evening. Victoria had closed the tavern after siesta due to the events of this mid-November morning.

Reflecting back, she saw in her mind's eye the surprise of the citizens in the plaza when the Mexican commander and his troop had ridden into the pueblo. She was grateful the whole takeover had been peaceful and the leader seemed to have an understanding way with handling the peons and dons alike as he outlined the sale of California from Spain to Mexico and spoke of their new government under Mexican rule in his speech to the people.

After the speech, the Commandant announced that the Mexican government had found evidence of Alcalde DeSoto's misbehavior and was withdrawing him as Alcalde. A stunned Ignacio DeSoto had been summarily carted off in chains by four of the soldiers who took him to the port of San Pedro where DeSoto would be taken back to Spain. The evidence of his wrongdoing would be turned over to the Spanish government, where hopefully DeSoto would be tried for those crimes against the king.

This put the new government in a good light, since they were the ones to relieve the citizens from the oppression by the unjust Alcalde. The Commandant was somewhat surprised at the commotion and excitement created by his announcement – the people of Los Angeles were very vocal about their thanksgiving.

The proclamation of a pardon for Zorro had been included in the new changeover in authority and the Commandant had no problem with issuing it, along with the stipulation that Zorro should retire and let the new government take care of keeping law and order. This also brought more cheers and celebrating in the plaza, and everyone looked around to see if Zorro would show up.

No one had come forward to claim the pardon, and the Commandant had not pressed for anyone to do so, stating only that the pardon would be kept on file in his office and that all wanted posters of Zorro were to be taken down immediately.

There was also the announcement that anyone not wishing to stay under Mexican rule was free to leave, and that they should see the Commandant in his office to let him know of their plans. People would be given time to sell houses and lands and depart peacefully, providing they did not cause any trouble before they left the pueblo. A few people decided to leave but most had made their home in Los Angeles for so long, they didn't want to bother, as long as the new regime was decent.

Victoria had stood by herself on the porch of the tavern listening to the goings on, watching the people as they reacted to the soldiers and to DeSoto's arrest and deportation. The de la Vegas had just left after a celebration lunch in the tavern honoring Felipe's new status as Don Diego's newly adopted son. They had been riding out of the pueblo when the Mexicans had ridden in, forcing Don Alejandro, Don Diego and Don Felipe to veer to the side to make way for the newcomers. Felipe looked very handsome in his new caballero suit and he was trying very hard not to get it dirty.

Victoria looked over at Diego, Alejandro and Felipe sitting on their horses, trying to catch their reactions, but her focus was only on one man. Diego's face was like stone at first, then an expression of – what? Disbelief? Hope? Joy? crossed his face briefly before being shut down. She smiled to herself when she saw it, but the tavern was too far away from the pueblo's entrance gate for them to carry on any conversation, especially with so many people in the plaza.

The three de la Vegas had ridden home after the Mexican commander had finished his speech. Victoria didn't have a chance to talk to them and they had not come back to town since lunch. She had rested during siesta but never slept, only laid awake thinking about what might now come to pass.

Victoria knew that both she and Don Alejandro, and Felipe as well, had been worried through the years, fearing for Zorro's life, unsure if the day would ever come when he would be free to marry Victoria. They had lit many candles and said many prayers for Zorro's safety, praying to the Lord to protect him through his battles with the forces of evil.

And now, it appeared that battle might finally be over. Of course, life was never totally predictable, and things could change in an instant. But somehow, Victoria thought, they had to do something to move forward with their lives or they might never be together.

Realizing she didn't want to cook for the evening, and having no guests at the tavern at present, she simply put a "Closed" sign on her front door that afternoon, and no one had bothered her. At dinner hour Victoria made herself a small repast and decided to go to the lake to do some thinking.

Gazing out at the dark, peaceful water in front of her, she sighed deeply, wondering what would happen now. Sinking down to sit on a large flat stone under a nearby tree, she pulled her kerchief out of her pocket and untied it, revealing a gold ring with a small emerald. Slipping it on her finger, she held her hand up, gazing at the soft glow of the green stone in the bright moonlight.

Looking at the emerald on her finger, she wondered if she should have gone to the hacienda instead and tried to talk to Diego. Sighing again, she propped her arms on her knees and put her chin on her forearms, gazing at the dark waters. A soft whicker caught her attention and she looked around in the moonlight to see a riderless black stallion standing quietly a few feet away.

Victoria jumped up, startled, but Toronado stood perfectly still, unperturbed. Looking around, she saw and heard no one. Puzzled, she shook her head, but Toronado stood motionless. Suddenly a small pebble bounced softly on her head, falling to the side as she looked up into the branches of the nearby tree.

"So, are you going to speak to me? Or just throw stones at my head?"

The branches rustled softly as he climbed down to stand beside her. "I'd rather 'throw' kisses at you, unless you have a better idea."

A smile curved her lips and her hands went around his neck as they exchanged a slow, tender kiss. Drawing away, Zorro took off his heavy black gloves and put them in Toronado's saddlebag, draping his hat and cape over the saddle horn.

Victoria noticed he was not wearing a sword. "Evidently you don't expect to fight anyone," she smiled, motioning toward his hip and the lack of a weapon.

"Not unless we plan to have a fight, Preciosa," he answered, grinning as he took her hands in his and kissing the finger which held his ring. She smiled up into his eyes, her own eyes questioning. He drew her close for another stirring kiss.

"And now, you can retire and marry me?" she asked softly as they drew apart again. Resting his chin on the top of her head, he exhaled slowly, wrapping his arms around her securely. "I hope so, mi Amor."

"Hope so? Not, 'know so'?" Her tone was full of disappointment but she did not move away. "The new commandant seems like a good man who can handle the job of keeping the pueblo and its citizens safe."

"Si, it is not the commandant I am worried about." He looked at her, bemused, a wry smile on his lips.

"Still worried about me?" She chuckled softly and lifted her head to look at him fully as her finger traced the bottom of his mask across the middle of his face. "Still don't believe me, do you?"

"I have hidden myself from you for a long time, mi Preciosa. You say you love the man under the mask, but," he sighed longingly, "I am not so sure you will feel the same once you know who he is. You have made it fairly plain over the years how you feel about me." His eyes held apprehension and suppressed hope.

"You think you know how I feel about you?" She wrinkled her nose at him, smiling flirtatiously.

"I believe I do." His eyes were sad as he looked worriedly at her in the silvery moonlight.

"You believe wrong." Her voice was strong and determined and her brown eyes gazed heatedly into his deep blue ones.

His heart began a slow pounding at the compassionate expression on her face and her compelling words. Could it be possible… he had never believed she could love the man behind the mask because of the way she always acted toward him. Nonetheless her voice held such conviction that it almost convinced him. Even under the mask, it was clear his eyebrows were raised in disbelief. "What do you mean, I am wrong?"

"I made a fool of myself by throwing myself at Zorro publicly, declaring my love for you before I figured out where it would lead. Once I realized what I had done, I knew I couldn't go back on it, not without leading the Alcalde straight to the man I _really_ loved," she scowled at him.

Zorro stood there in shock. "You know?" he gasped, doubt showing in his face. His eyes held hers for a long quiet moment as he struggled to breathe deeply. "And did you just say – _the man I really loved_?" His expression wavered between doubt and hope.

Cradling his face with her hands, Victoria nodded. "We have acted like 'brother and sister' so long that it would have seemed out of place to 'fall in love' with you after declaring my love for a masked outlaw. I thought I was doing the right thing at first, putting my attention on Zorro. Then I realized – too late – it was exactly the wrong thing to do. I made a mess of things, and I couldn't figure out how to solve it without putting a target on your back." Victoria sighed deeply. "I never dreamed your fight would go on this long."

For a moment he was speechless. Absently his hand smoothed a lock of her hair, curling it in his fingers. "So all this time, all your cutting remarks… it was really an act?" He shook his head in disbelief. "You had me fooled," he said wryly. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Her hands slipped to his shoulders and smoothed over his muscled forearms, grasping them as if to steady herself. "I was afraid that if I told you, I wouldn't be able to keep up my end of the acting – that the love in my eyes would begin to show and it would become too obvious who I cared for. I knew that if _you_ knew that _I_ knew," she smiled wistfully, "I would be too tempted to give in to my feelings for you, and I was afraid someone would catch on and report it to the Alcalde." She poked him in the chest. "Just like you had to fool everyone else in the pueblo to keep yourself safe. I simply 'played along' with you, much as I didn't like it," she scowled.

He dropped a kiss on her forehead, looking into her adoring eyes. "Preciosa, oh, Victoria, my love." His deep voice shook and uncertainty still clouded his face. "Victoria, do you truly love…. _me_?" he whispered, doubt leaking into his words. He was still in shock, trying to process the startling new thought that Victoria really loved Diego.

"Well," she whispered with a chuckle, pulling his head close to hers, "I'm certainly not in love with your father or Felipe." Her eyes glowed hotly as she leaned in to place a soft, sweet kiss on his lips. A huge wave of relief flowed over him as he deepened the kiss, feeling like a starving man who had just been invited to a banquet. Realizing he was going too fast, he broke the kiss, both of them breathing heavily. Playing with her long dark tresses, he gulped for air, trying to calm down. "All this time, I've been so worried about your reaction to who I am. So much wasted time…"

"Not wasted," she asserted softly, her arms around his waist. "It kept you alive and kept suspicion away from you."

His head was spinning and he still couldn't wrap his mind around the fact of her deception. "Well, perhaps. But how long have you known? From the beginning?" She had been play acting for how long now?

Victoria gave him a cheeky grin. "Well, not at the beginning, but I began to suspect after the many hints you gave me. Besides, you were such a daredevil when you were younger, playing with my brothers. It was hard for me to believe you had totally changed to a 'quiet, peaceful scholar and scientist' when you came back from Madrid after three years." A sassy grin accompanied her words and he pulled her close for another amazing kiss.

Would he ever get over the shock of her knowing, he wondered? The restraint with which he had always held himself seemed to be dissolving in the awareness of her understanding and his own long repressed desire to have her. He held her away, trying to calm them both down. There was also a second reason he held them apart and he suspected she knew it from the way her roving eyes moved over his lower body.

She tapped him on the nose with her finger. "You need to tell your father, especially if we are going to marry." Her eyes gleamed as she waggled her ring finger at him.

"I know, but I'm afraid of what he will say. He supported Zorro but if he had known it was me I doubt he would have approved of my working outside the law, as well as having to bear the strain of the possibility that I might come to harm. The revelation of my identity to the authorities would have placed him in a very bad position."

"Yet you defended the people of the pueblo from two unjust Alcaldes anyway." She shook her head, marveling. "I knew it was you in danger, but I also understood why you did it. Not that I liked the danger it put you in," she glared at him, "but I guess you could say it was 'part of the job'," she scowled, sighing. "But you need to tell him, now that it's over and we can get married."

"What if I just don't tell him – and you don't either," he gave her an impish grin, clucking her under her chin. "I'm afraid he will be too upset if I finally tell him the truth."

"Just like you were afraid of telling me? Perhaps you are wrong about him too." Encouragement showed on her expression along with understanding.

Tilting his head thoughtfully, he gazed over the water, gathering her close again in his embrace and resting his cheek on her hair. "No, I don't think so. But you're right, he needs to know. At least, he needs to know you're not just throwing Zorro over for that milk-toast son of his," he smiled wryly at her.

"His son is not 'milk-toast', Senor," she stated firmly, swatting his arm. "He's a wonderful man in his own right, even if he fights with a pen instead of a sword." In an effort to make amends for the swat, she gave him a soft, quick kiss to convince him of her words.

Finally drawing apart, Zorro helped Victoria mount Anjelica and then swung himself up on Toronado. "Let's head back to the hacienda. That's where father was when I left to come to the lake."

They rode slowly and quietly over the land illuminated by the shimmering moon. As they approached the hacienda, he noticed his father was in the rose garden at the back of the house. Sitting on their horses, they could just see over the stone wall surrounding the large garden. Diego saw that his father was standing next to the small statue of a winged angel near the bushes of his mother's favorite dark red roses. Diego remembered hearing Alejandro describe how he and Elena used to sit in the rose garden after dinner many nights, simply enjoying being together.

The silver light of the moon was overshadowed briefly by clouds. With a finger to his lips to indicate silence, Zorro stopped Toronado near the front wall and dismounted, turning to Anjelica to lift Victoria down gently. Tying both horses to a nearby bush, he took Victoria's hand and led her silently through the gate into the shadows of the rose garden. A man's quiet voice could be heard as they silently approached.

"Ah Elena, I wish you could be here now. I know many people will not like the Mexican takeover but they will get used to it, or leave if they cannot. Me, I am too old to want to start over, and my only wish is that you were here with me now. I believe I will soon be getting grandchildren, Elena, and though I will tell them all about you, it won't be the same as if you were here."

Alejandro sighed longingly, sitting down on a small bench near the angel, his hands holding a single dark red rose. "The new commandant is a good man who will rule well in our pueblo. And with that taken care of, Diego can hang up his mask and marry Victoria and fill this house with our grandchildren! I have waited so long for him to be able to retire Zorro and marry his love. It has been terribly difficult for me, knowing it was Diego putting himself in danger all this time. But you would have been proud of him, my dear. Indeed," he chuckled quietly, "you would have been encouraging him!"

Alejandro gave a soft sigh. "But now things are changing and the thought of it all makes me look forward to growing older except for one thing – oh, Elena, I miss you so." Alejandro's voice broke as a tear rolled down his cheek.

Twirling it in his hands, Alejandro leaned over to place the dark red rose at the feet of the angel. "Felipe told me Zorro left to see Victoria tonight, and my heart is holding great hope for the outcome. He is waiting in the cave to take care of Toronado when they return, and Felipe promised to let me know when Diego comes back, if Diego doesn't come to me himself."

Zorro's ears caught a slight movement from behind him and he turned to see Felipe in the shadows near the front gate. Motioning for him to take cover, he turned to Victoria, breathing softly in her ear, "Hide behind me."

A quiet rustle caused Alejandro to look around him. At first he saw nothing in the night's dimness, then the clouds drifted on and moonlight revealed Zorro standing quietly nearby, alone, watching him.

Unsure if the outlaw had heard his musings, he smiled kindly at him. "Good evening, Senor Zorro. I didn't realize I had a visitor. Please, won't you come into the hacienda and join me for some refreshment?" Don Alejandro asked hopefully.

Turning slightly, Zorro reached behind him, taking Victoria's hand to pull her in front of him, holding her closely at her waist. He smiled down at her as she looked up at him, their love glowing in their eyes. Looking up and catching his father's eyes with a knowing look, Zorro slowly removed his mask and handed it to Victoria who took the mask in her right hand, Elena's emerald ring twinkling on her ring finger in the moonlight.

A gasp escaped Alejandro's lips and his eyes grew wide with surprise and delight. Extending her hand with the mask and ring, Victoria spoke. "We would love to join you, Father," she smiled at the man who had been like a father to her since her parents had died.

Diego dropped a kiss on Victoria's hair, grinning as they walked over to the bench. "Perhaps we can persuade Felipe to join our celebration," Diego smiled at his father affectionately, turning to motion to a grinning Felipe who stood at the front gate of the garden. Holding out his hand, Diego helped his father stand as Felipe joined them. Alejandro rose to full height and enveloped them all in a loving embrace. "Thank you, Lord," he breathed a deep sigh of relief and joy. The future had finally come.

Fini


End file.
